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GRIOTech / Resources

The thinking behind
better-performing buildings.

Engineering ideas, examined in detail. Publications and practical investigations on how buildings behave, how evidence is interpreted and how performance can improve.

An engineering collection

The GRIOTech Field Guides.

Long-form thinking, with room for the detail. Read online or request the complete PDF edition.

FG/01 — The Performance Chain Model, publication cover
FG/01 / Field Guide

The Performance Chain Model

A connected model of generation, distribution, air handling and zones. Seven chapters on system boundaries, performance assessment and tracing operational impact.

Read the guide
UpdatedFG/02 — The Continuous Audit, publication cover
FG/02 / Revision 2

The Continuous Audit

What it takes to move from describing performance to evaluating it continuously: causal understanding, operational exposure, clear briefings and verified outcomes.

Second edition · October 2026.Read the guide
NewFG/03 — The Psychology of Insight, publication cover
FG/03 / Field Guide

The Psychology of Insight

Noticing, interpreting and encoding: three cognitive boundaries between a signal in building data and an action in the world. A framework for diagnostic systems, with a worked sensor investigation.

Read the guide

Research / Standards / Engineering methods

The evidence behind
the thinking.

ABIE is built around established engineering principles, independent research and defined assessment methods.

Explore the studies, standards and professional guidance that inform our approach to understanding building performance — from operational faults and energy modelling to system relationships, exposure and verification.

These references support different aspects of the approach. ABIE’s own assessment and scoring methods are developed by GRIOTech and are not certified or endorsed by the organisations listed.

16 references / curated

Featured researchR02 / Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory2020Supporting evidence

Examines reported FDD savings alongside ways to assess diagnostic-algorithm performance.

Relevance to ABIE Helps explain why fault detection needs repeatable evaluation as well as evidence of operational benefit.

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R03 / Pacific Northwest National Laboratory2017Supporting evidence

A retrospective study examines re-tuning in federal buildings and the practical work behind operating improvements.

Relevance to ABIE Connects operational understanding with control-system correction and engineering intervention.

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R04 / Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory2012Supporting evidence

A single office-building case study follows monitoring-based HVAC commissioning and subsequent operation.

Relevance to ABIE Shows why connected investigation, operating history and post-intervention checks belong together.

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R05 / Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory2019Supporting evidence

Research on a systematic framework for evaluating building fault detection and diagnosis algorithms.

Relevance to ABIE Supports the distinction between detecting an unusual condition and establishing a reliable diagnosis that can be explained.

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M01 / ASHRAE2023Engineering alignment

Guidance on the measurement of energy, demand and water savings.

Relevance to ABIE Relevant to expected-versus-actual energy assessment and checking outcomes after intervention.

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M02 / ASHRAE2022Engineering alignment

A commissioning-process standard for existing buildings and systems.

Relevance to ABIE Relevant to the evidence and accountability linking a finding, intervention and subsequent assessment.

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Published foundations / GRIOTech implementation

The basis of the assessment.

Different aspects of building performance require different forms of evidence. ABIE draws on established engineering principles while applying its own connected assessment framework.

Explore the published methods and research relevant to each area.

Energy & Recoverable Value

A suitable baseline helps distinguish changing demand from unusual consumption. Defined boundaries, operating conditions and measurements make the comparison meaningful. A recoverable opportunity still needs an intervention; savings need subsequent verification.

A modelled deviation is not automatically avoidable energy or a measured saving.

Explore the Field Guide
Browse the complete published bibliography and assessment methods

Independent sources inform the engineering context. Referencing a standard does not certify ABIE or establish conformity with it.

Building fault detection and diagnostics: Achieved savings, and methods to evaluate algorithm performance

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory · 2020 · Supporting evidence

Examines reported FDD savings alongside ways to assess diagnostic-algorithm performance.

A participating-user study does not establish the accuracy or savings of ABIE. Diagnostic test performance and achieved building savings answer different questions. The public abstract does not state a common observation period or savings-normalisation basis. The reported cohort result is not an annual savings forecast for another building.

View original publication

Success of Commercial Building Re-tuning in Federal Buildings: Results and Case Studies

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory · 2017 · Supporting evidence

A retrospective study examines re-tuning in federal buildings and the practical work behind operating improvements.

Re-tuning includes human investigation and corrective work. Its outcomes do not imply that monitoring or identifying a fault alone saves energy. Results are specific to the participating buildings and study boundaries. Published March 2017. The public abstract reports annual savings but not the individual monitoring dates or adjustment procedures; consult the full study before transferring its result to another context.

View original publication

Monitoring-based HVAC Commissioning of an Existing Office Building for Energy Efficiency

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory · 2012 · Supporting evidence

A single office-building case study follows monitoring-based HVAC commissioning and subsequent operation.

A single intervention is contextual evidence, not a general savings rate. Identified potential, implemented measures and measured outcomes must remain distinct. Published October 2012. The public abstract does not specify the post-intervention observation period or measurement adjustments; 10% is the reported case outcome, not a general or necessarily annual savings rate.

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A performance evaluation framework for building fault detection and diagnosis algorithms

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory · 2019 · Supporting evidence

Research on a systematic framework for evaluating building fault detection and diagnosis algorithms.

A diagnostic evaluation framework does not validate ABIE’s algorithms. Performance depends on the defined faults, test conditions, ground truth and evaluation boundary.

View original publication

Measurement of Energy, Demand and Water Savings

ASHRAE · 2023 · Engineering alignment

Guidance on the measurement of energy, demand and water savings.

Does not prescribe ABIE’s recoverable-value calculation or scoring. A consumption deviation is not automatically avoidable energy, and a modelled opportunity is not verified savings. The published scope excludes large-scale demand-side-management sampling methods, metering standards and major industrial process loads.

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Commissioning Process for Existing Buildings and Systems

ASHRAE · 2022 · Engineering alignment

A commissioning-process standard for existing buildings and systems.

A software work order is not a complete commissioning process. Referencing the standard does not demonstrate compliance or replace required professional commissioning work.

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Semantic Data Model for Analytics and Automation Applications in Buildings

ASHRAE · · Engineering alignment

A proposed semantic data model, with official supporting resources, for describing building systems for analytics and automation.

ASHRAE’s titles, purposes and scopes register lists 223P as proposed. This is not presented as a dated, published standard or a claim that ABIE implements it. Direct implementation in ABIE has not been established. Semantic relationships do not prove causation, sensor validity or sufficient instrumentation, and do not define ABIE’s Observability score.

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Standard Practice for Inspection and Maintenance of Commercial Building HVAC Systems

ASHRAE / ACCA · 2018 · Engineering alignment

A standard for inspection and maintenance of commercial-building HVAC systems.

A missing inspection or proof record does not by itself establish equipment failure; software assessment does not replace required inspection. The standard’s exclusions and applicable building/system scope must be observed.

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Thermal Environmental Conditions for Human Occupancy

ASHRAE · 2023 · Engineering alignment

A thermal-comfort standard addressing conditions for human occupancy.

Air temperature alone does not establish full ASHRAE 55 compliance. A representative service score is not a compliance result, and different services require different criteria.

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Ventilation and Acceptable Indoor Air Quality

ASHRAE · 2025 · Engineering alignment

A ventilation and indoor-air-quality standard for applicable building types.

A commanded fan state is not measured ventilation. An operational service comparison is not a complete compliance assessment or a substitute for applicable statutory or specialist validation.

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Operational Performance: Building Performance Modelling and Calibration for Evaluation of Energy In-Use

CIBSE · 2020 · Engineering alignment

Guidance on modelling and calibrating building performance to examine energy in use.

A calibrated model is not automatically an optimal-operation baseline. Model suitability, input quality and the comparison period affect what a deviation can establish. Primarily written for UK non-domestic buildings, with an office worked example. Other countries and contexts require appropriate adjustments.

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Energy management systems — Evaluating energy performance using energy performance indicators and energy baselines

ISO · 2023 · Engineering alignment

Guidance on energy performance indicators and energy baselines within energy management.

Does not prescribe ABIE’s proprietary performance indices or make them ISO-certified. Baseline adjustment and applicable operating conditions remain necessary.

View original publication

International Performance Measurement and Verification Protocol

Efficiency Valuation Organization · 2022 · Engineering alignment

A measurement-and-verification framework for energy and water savings.

An estimate of recoverable opportunity is not a measured saving. Metering boundaries, adjustments, uncertainty and the chosen verification approach must be stated. EVO’s public overview verifies the 2022 Core Concepts reference and its M&V scope. The full document requires an EVO account and was not reproduced or reviewed here.

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Brick: A Uniform Metadata Schema for Buildings

Brick Ontology Project · · Engineering alignment

An open metadata initiative for representing building equipment, points and relationships.

Direct implementation in ABIE has not been established. No Brick certification is claimed; an equipment relationship alone does not prove an operating fault or causal effect. This entry refers to the undated project introduction, not a specific software release or the separately published research paper. No publication year or DOI is assigned to that web page.

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Risk management — Guidelines

ISO · 2018 · Engineering alignment

Guidelines for structured risk management.

ISO 31000 does not prescribe ABIE’s 0–100 Risk Exposure score or a universal failure probability. Context, evidence and the applicable consequence boundary remain essential.

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Asset management — Asset management system — Requirements

ISO · 2024 · Engineering alignment

Requirements for an asset-management system.

This reference establishes neither ISO 55001 certification of GRIOTech or ABIE nor a prescribed algorithm for ABIE’s exposure scores.

View original publication

Energy & Recoverable Value

A suitable baseline helps distinguish changing demand from unusual consumption. Defined boundaries, operating conditions and measurements make the comparison meaningful. A recoverable opportunity still needs an intervention; savings need subsequent verification.

A modelled deviation is not automatically avoidable energy or a measured saving.

Read the supporting Field Guide

Service Delivery

Assessing service starts with what the building or system is required to deliver. Applicable comfort and ventilation criteria can inform that requirement when the necessary measurements and operating context are available.

An operational service assessment is not a complete ASHRAE compliance test.

Read the supporting Field Guide

Risk Exposure

Structured risk and asset-management principles help connect an operating concern with its potential consequences, equipment importance and appropriate attention. The assessment needs a stated context and supporting evidence.

These standards do not define ABIE’s numerical Risk Exposure method.

Read the supporting Field Guide

Assurance Exposure

Inspection, maintenance, commissioning and proof of performance provide different forms of assurance. Understanding what has been required, completed and demonstrated helps teams identify where further evidence or action is needed.

An unmet requirement or missing proof record does not by itself establish equipment failure.

Read the supporting Field Guide

Observability

A reading is useful when its equipment, meaning and limitations are understood. Suitable instrumentation, structured metadata and testable diagnostic evidence help establish which assessments the available information can support.

Metadata is not proof of sensor integrity. These references do not define ABIE’s Observability score.

Read the supporting Field Guide

System Relationships & Reasoning

Knowing which systems connect gives an investigation context beyond an isolated alert. Operating evidence and diagnostic evaluation help distinguish a possible origin from symptoms and supported consequences elsewhere.

A semantic or physical relationship alone does not prove causation. Attribute each distinct energy or financial consequence once.

Read the supporting Field Guide

Reading the relationship. Supporting evidence documents a published study. Engineering alignment identifies related principles. A method reference is reserved for a prescribed method confirmed in an ABIE assessment; relevance alone is not enough.

The library

Explore the published work.

Latest publications and updated editions first.

5 published resources

Walkthroughs

Remote DP Low

A chilled-water pressure fault leads to three possible explanations: sensor error, a hidden bypass or a restricted branch. Examine the evidence that separates them.

Chilled-water distribution / Diagnostic reasoning
Occasional reading

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New Field Guides, investigations and perspectives, when there’s something useful to share.

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Engineering thinking, in practice

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